Method and device for transmitting uart communications over a security short range wireless communication

ABSTRACT

Disclosed is a modular surgical instrument, comprising a handle assembly comprising a handle assembly control circuit and a modular attachment. The modular attachment comprises a nozzle, and a shaft extending distally from the nozzle, the shaft defining a central longitudinal axis. The modular attachment further comprises an end effector distal to the shaft, the end effector comprising a sensor array. The modular attachment further comprises a modular attachment control circuit communicably coupled to the sensor array, and physically coupled to the shaft. The modular attachment control circuit is configured to rotate with the shaft relative to the handle assembly about the central longitudinal axis. The modular attachment control circuit is configured for wireless communication with the handle assembly control circuit.

BACKGROUND

The present disclosure relates to surgical instruments and surgical robots, including robotic tool attachments for use with a surgical robot.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates a surgical instrument comprising a modular attachment removably coupleable with a handle assembly, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 illustrates a detailed view of an end effector comprising a first and second jaw member with an embedded sensor array, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 illustrates a cutaway view of a surgical instrument comprising a modular attachment that removably couples with a handle assembly, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 Illustrates a communication bus that communicably couples a sensor array of the end effector with the modular attachment control circuit, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of a surgical instrument comprising a control circuit of a modular attachment surgical instrument that is configurable to wirelessly communicate with a control circuit of a handle assembly, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 illustrates a modular attachment configured to wirelessly communicate with both internal devices and external devices, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flow diagram for enabling a SRW broadcast by a modular attachment configured with an induction power transfer circuit, and establishing a SRW connection with a handle assembly, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 illustrates a flow diagram for enabling a SRW broadcast by a modular attachment with an external power station, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 illustrates a flow diagram for enabling UART encoding and sending and receiving end effector signals over the SRW connection, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 illustrates an aspect of a modular attachment that is powered by a power source as part of the modular attachment power control circuit, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIGS. 11 and 12 illustrate a power interrupt circuit comprising a one-time pull tab 248 and a resettable pull tab, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13 illustrates another aspect of a modular attachment comprising a power control circuit with a one-time pull tab that is part of the original packaging of the modular attachment, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 14 illustrates a flow diagram for enabling and disabling a sleep mode setting for a modular attachment of a surgical instrument, in accordance with at least one aspect of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications filed concurrently herewith, the disclosure of each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. patent application entitled ELECTRICAL LEAD ARRANGEMENTS FOR     SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS; Attorney Docket No. END9362USNP1/210195-1; -   U.S. patent application entitled SURGICAL DEVICE WITH INTERNAL     COMMUNICATION THAT COMBINES MULTIPLE SIGNALS PER WIRE; Attorney     Docket No. END9362USNP2/210195-2; -   U.S. patent application Serial entitled STAPLE CARTRIDGE     IDENTIFICATION SYSTEMS; Attorney Docket No. END9362USNP3/210195-3; -   U.S. patent application Serial entitled SURGICAL INSTRUMENT     CARTRIDGE WITH UNIQUE RESISTOR FOR SURGICAL INSTRUMENT     IDENTIFICATION; Attorney Docket No. END9362USNP4/210195-4; and -   U.S. patent application entitled ALTERNATE MEANS TO ESTABLISH     RESISTIVE LOAD FORCE; Attorney Docket No. END9362USNP6/210195-6.

Applicant of the present application also owns the following U.S. patent applications that were filed on Apr. 11, 2020 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entireties:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,303, entitled METHODS FOR     STAPLING TISSUE USING A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,304, entitled ARTICULATION     ACTUATORS FOR A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,305, entitled ARTICULATION     DIRECTIONAL LIGHTS ON A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,307, entitled SHAFT ROTATION     ACTUATOR ON A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,308, entitled ARTICULATION     CONTROL MAPPING FOR A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,309, entitled INTELLIGENT     FIRING ASSOCIATED WITH A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,310, entitled INTELLIGENT     FIRING ASSOCIATED WITH A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,311, entitled ROTATABLE JAW     TIP FOR A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,312, entitled TISSUE STOP     FOR A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/846,313, entitled ARTICULATION     PIN FOR A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT.

The entire disclosure of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/840,715, entitled SURGICAL INSTRUMENT COMPRISING AN ADAPTIVE CONTROL SYSTEM, filed Apr. 30, 2019, is hereby incorporated by reference herein.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications that were filed on Feb. 21, 2019 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entireties:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,658, entitled METHODS FOR     CONTROLLING A POWERED SURGICAL STAPLER THAT HAS SEPARATE ROTARY     CLOSURE AND FIRING SYSTEMS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,670, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGE COMPRISING A LOCKOUT KEY CONFIGURED TO LIFT A FIRING     MEMBER; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,675, entitled surgical     staplers with arrangements for maintaining a firing member thereof     in a locked configuration unless a compatible cartridge has been     installed therein; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,685, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING CO-OPERATING LOCKOUT FEATURES; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,693, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A LOCKOUT AND AN EXTERIOR ACCESS     ORIFICE TO PERMIT ARTIFICIAL UNLOCKING OF THE LOCKOUT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,704, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING DEVICES WITH FEATURES FOR BLOCKING ADVANCEMENT OF A CAMMING     ASSEMBLY OF AN INCOMPATIBLE CARTRIDGE INSTALLED THEREIN; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,707, entitled STAPLING     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A DEACTIVATABLE LOCKOUT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,741, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A JAW CLOSURE LOCKOUT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,762, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING DEVICES WITH CARTRIDGE COMPATIBLE CLOSURE AND FIRING     LOCKOUT ARRANGEMENTS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,666, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING DEVICES WITH IMPROVED ROTARY DRIVEN CLOSURE SYSTEMS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,672, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING DEVICES WITH ASYMMETRIC CLOSURE FEATURES; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,678, entitled ROTARY DRIVEN     FIRING MEMBERS WITH DIFFERENT ANVIL AND CHANNEL ENGAGEMENT FEATURES;     and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/281,682, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING DEVICE WITH SEPARATE ROTARY DRIVEN CLOSURE AND FIRING     SYSTEMS AND FIRING MEMBER THAT ENGAGES BOTH JAWS WHILE FIRING.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. Provisional patent applications that were filed on Feb. 19, 2019 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entireties:

-   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/807,310, entitled     METHODS FOR CONTROLLING A POWERED SURGICAL STAPLER THAT HAS SEPARATE     ROTARY CLOSURE AND FIRING SYSTEMS; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/807,319, entitled     SURGICAL STAPLING DEVICES WITH IMPROVED LOCKOUT SYSTEMS; and -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/807,309, entitled     SURGICAL STAPLING DEVICES WITH IMPROVED ROTARY DRIVEN CLOSURE     SYSTEMS.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. Provisional Patent Applications, filed on Mar. 28, 2018, each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,302, entitled     INTERACTIVE SURGICAL SYSTEMS WITH encrypted COMMUNICATION     CAPABILITIES; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,294, entitled     DATA STRIPPING METHOD TO INTERROGATE PATIENT RECORDS AND CREATE     ANONYMIZED RECORD; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,300, entitled     SURGICAL HUB SITUATIONAL AWARENESS; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,309, entitled     SURGICAL HUB SPATIAL AWARENESS TO DETERMINE DEVICES IN OPERATING     THEATER; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,310, entitled     COMPUTER IMPLEMENTED INTERACTIVE SURGICAL SYSTEMS; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,291, entitled     USE OF LASER LIGHT AND RED-GREEN-BLUE COLORATION TO DETERMINE     PROPERTIES OF BACK SCATTERED LIGHT; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,296, entitled     ADAPTIVE CONTROL PROGRAM UPDATES FOR SURGICAL DEVICES; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,333, entitled     CLOUD-BASED MEDICAL ANALYTICS FOR CUSTOMIZATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS     TO A USER; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,327, entitled     CLOUD-BASED MEDICAL ANALYTICS FOR SECURITY AND AUTHENTICATION TRENDS     AND REACTIVE MEASURES; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,315, entitled     DATA HANDLING AND PRIORITIZATION IN A CLOUD ANALYTICS NETWORK; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,313, entitled     CLOUD INTERFACE FOR COUPLED SURGICAL DEVICES; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,320, entitled     DRIVE ARRANGEMENTS FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,307, entitled     AUTOMATIC TOOL ADJUSTMENTS FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS;     and -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,323, entitled     SENSING ARRANGEMENTS FOR Robot-Assisted Surgical PlatformS.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. Provisional Patent Application, filed on Mar. 30, 2018, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/650,887, entitled     SURGICAL SYSTEMS WITH OPTIMIZED SENSING CAPABILITIES.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent application, filed on Dec. 4, 2018, which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/209,423, entitled METHOD OF     COMPRESSING TISSUE WITHIN A STAPLING DEVICE AND SIMULTANEOUSLY     DISPLAYING THE LOCATION OF THE TISSUE WITHIN THE JAWS.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications that were filed on Aug. 20, 2018 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entireties:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,101, entitled METHOD FOR     FAbricating SURGICAL STAPLER ANVILS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,183, entitled REINFORCED     DEFORMABLE ANVIL TIP FOR SURGICAL STAPLER ANVIL; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,150, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLER ANVILS WITH STAPLE DIRECTING PROTRUSIONS AND TISSUE     STABILITY FEATURES; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,098, entitled FABRICATING     TECHNIQUES FOR SURGICAL STAPLER ANVILS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,140, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLER ANVILS WITH TISSUE STOP FEATURES CONFIGURED TO AVOID TISSUE     PINCH; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,081, entitled METHOD FOR     OPERATING A POWERED ARTICULATABLE SURGICAL INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,094, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH PROGRESSIVE JAW CLOSURE ARRANGEMENTS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,097, entitled POWERED     SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH CLUTCHING ARRANGEMENTS TO CONVERT LINEAR     DRIVE MOTIONS TO ROTARY DRIVE MOTIONS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,104, entitled POWERED     ARTICULATABLE SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH CLUTCHING AND LOCKING     ARRANGEMENTS FOR LINKING AN ARTICULATION DRIVE SYSTEM TO A FIRING     DRIVE SYSTEM; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,119, entitled ARTICULATABLE     MOTOR POWERED SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH DEDICATED ARTICULATION MOTOR     ARRANGEMENTS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/105,160, entitled SWITCHING     ARRANGEMENTS FOR MOTOR POWERED ARTICULATABLE SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS;     and -   U.S. Design Patent Application Serial No. 29/660,252, entitled     SURGICAL STAPLER ANVILS.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications and U.S. patents that are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entireties:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,185, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENTS AND REPLACEABLE TOOL ASSEMBLIES THEREOF, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168642; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,230, entitled ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL STAPLING INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168649; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,221, entitled LOCKOUT     ARRANGEMENTS FOR SURGICAL END EFFECTORS, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168646; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,209, entitled SURGICAL END     EFFECTORS AND FIRING MEMBERS THEREOF, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168645; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,198, entitled LOCKOUT     ARRANGEMENTS FOR SURGICAL END EFFECTORS AND REPLACEABLE TOOL     ASSEMBLIES, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168644; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,240, entitled SURGICAL END     EFFECTORS AND ADAPTABLE FIRING MEMBERS THEREFOR, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168651; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,939, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGES AND ARRANGEMENTS OF STAPLES AND STAPLE CAVITIES THEREIN,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168629; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,941, entitled SURGICAL TOOL     ASSEMBLIES WITH CLUTCHING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SHIFTING BETWEEN CLOSURE     SYSTEMS WITH CLOSURE STROKE REDUCTION FEATURES AND ARTICULATION AND     FIRING SYSTEMS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168630; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,943, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENTS AND STAPLE-FORMING ANVILS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168631; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,950, entitled SURGICAL TOOL     ASSEMBLIES WITH CLOSURE STROKE REDUCTION FEATURES, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168635; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,945, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGES AND ARRANGEMENTS OF STAPLES AND STAPLE CAVITIES THEREIN,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168632; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,946, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENTS AND STAPLE-FORMING ANVILS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168633; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,951, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH JAW OPENING FEATURES FOR INCREASING A JAW OPENING     DISTANCE, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168636; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,953, entitled METHODS OF     STAPLING TISSUE, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168637; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,954, entitled FIRING MEMBERS     WITH NON-PARALLEL JAW ENGAGEMENT FEATURES FOR SURGICAL END     EFFECTORS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168638; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,955, entitled SURGICAL END     EFFECTORS WITH EXPANDABLE TISSUE STOP ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168639; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,948, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENTS AND STAPLE-FORMING ANVILS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168584; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,956, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH POSITIVE JAW OPENING FEATURES, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168640; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,958, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH LOCKOUT ARRANGEMENTS FOR PREVENTING FIRING SYSTEM     ACTUATION UNLESS AN UNSPENT STAPLE CARTRIDGE IS PRESENT, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168641; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,947, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGES AND ARRANGEMENTS OF STAPLES AND STAPLE CAVITIES THEREIN,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168634; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,896, entitled METHOD FOR     RESETTING A FUSE OF A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT SHAFT, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168597; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,898, entitled STAPLE-FORMING     POCKET ARRANGEMENT TO ACCOMMODATE DIFFERENT TYPES OF STAPLES, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168599; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,899, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING IMPROVED JAW CONTROL, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168600; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,901, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGE AND STAPLE CARTRIDGE CHANNEL COMPRISING WINDOWS DEFINED     THEREIN, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168602; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,902, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A CUTTING MEMBER, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168603; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,904, entitled STAPLE FIRING     MEMBER COMPRISING A MISSING CARTRIDGE AND/OR SPENT CARTRIDGE     LOCKOUT, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168605; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,905, entitled FIRING     ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A LOCKOUT, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168606; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,907, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT SYSTEM COMPRISING AN END EFFECTOR LOCKOUT AND A FIRING     ASSEMBLY LOCKOUT, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168608; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,908, entitled FIRING     ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A FUSE, now U.S. Patent Application Publication     No. 2018/0168609; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,909, entitled FIRING     ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A MULTIPLE FAILED-STATE FUSE, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168610; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,920, entitled STAPLE-FORMING     POCKET ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168620; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,913, entitled ANVIL     ARRANGEMENTS FOR SURGICAL STAPLERS, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168614; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,914, entitled METHOD OF     DEFORMING STAPLES FROM TWO DIFFERENT TYPES OF STAPLE CARTRIDGES WITH     THE SAME SURGICAL STAPLING INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168615; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,893, entitled BILATERALLY     ASYMMETRIC STAPLE-FORMING POCKET PAIRS, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168594; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,929, entitled CLOSURE     MEMBERS WITH CAM SURFACE ARRANGEMENTS FOR SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH     SEPARATE AND DISTINCT CLOSURE AND FIRING SYSTEMS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168626; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,911, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLERS WITH INDEPENDENTLY ACTUATABLE CLOSING AND FIRING SYSTEMS,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168612; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,927, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENTS WITH SMART STAPLE CARTRIDGES, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168625; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,917, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGE COMPRISING STAPLES WITH DIFFERENT CLAMPING BREADTHS, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168617; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,900, entitled STAPLE-FORMING     POCKET ARRANGEMENTS COMPRISING PRIMARY SIDEWALLS AND POCKET     SIDEWALLS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168601; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,931, entitled NO-CARTRIDGE     AND SPENT CARTRIDGE LOCKOUT ARRANGEMENTS FOR SURGICAL STAPLERS, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168627; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,915, entitled FIRING MEMBER     PIN ANGLE, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168616; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,897, entitled STAPLE-FORMING     POCKET ARRANGEMENTS COMPRISING ZONED FORMING SURFACE GROOVES, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168598; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,922, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT WITH MULTIPLE FAILURE RESPONSE MODES, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168622; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,924, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT WITH PRIMARY AND SAFETY PROCESSORS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168624; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,910, entitled ANVIL HAVING A     KNIFE SLOT WIDTH, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168611; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,903, entitled CLOSURE MEMBER     ARRANGEMENTS FOR SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168604; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,906, entitled FIRING MEMBER     PIN CONFIGURATIONS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168607; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,188, entitled STEPPED STAPLE     CARTRIDGE WITH ASYMMETRICAL STAPLES, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168585; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,192, entitled STEPPED STAPLE     CARTRIDGE WITH TISSUE RETENTION AND GAP SETTING FEATURES, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168643; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,206, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGE WITH DEFORMABLE DRIVER RETENTION FEATURES, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168586; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,226, entitled DURABILITY     FEATURES FOR END EFFECTORS AND FIRING ASSEMBLIES OF SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168648; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,222, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENTS HAVING END EFFECTORS WITH POSITIVE OPENING     FEATURES, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168647; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/386,236, entitled CONNECTION     PORTIONS FOR DEPOSABLE LOADING UNITS FOR SURGICAL STAPLING     INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168650; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,887, entitled METHOD FOR     ATTACHING A SHAFT ASSEMBLY TO A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT AND,     ALTERNATIVELY, TO A SURGICAL ROBOT, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168589; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,889, entitled SHAFT ASSEMBLY     COMPRISING A MANUALLY-OPERABLE RETRACTION SYSTEM FOR USE WITH A     MOTORIZED SURGICAL INSTRUMENT SYSTEM, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168590; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,890, entitled SHAFT ASSEMBLY     COMPRISING SEPARATELY ACTUATABLE AND RETRACTABLE SYSTEMS, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168591; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,891, entitled SHAFT ASSEMBLY     COMPRISING A CLUTCH CONFIGURED TO ADAPT THE OUTPUT OF A ROTARY     FIRING MEMBER TO TWO DIFFERENT SYSTEMS, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168592; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,892, entitled SURGICAL     SYSTEM COMPRISING A FIRING MEMBER ROTATABLE INTO AN ARTICULATION     STATE TO ARTICULATE AN END EFFECTOR OF THE SURGICAL SYSTEM, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168593; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,894, entitled SHAFT ASSEMBLY     COMPRISING A LOCKOUT, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168595; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,895, entitled SHAFT ASSEMBLY     COMPRISING FIRST AND SECOND ARTICULATION LOCKOUTS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2018/0168596; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,916, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEMS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168575; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,918, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEMS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168618; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,919, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEMS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168619; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,921, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLE CARTRIDGE WITH MOVABLE CAMMING MEMBER CONFIGURED TO DISENGAGE     FIRING MEMBER LOCKOUT FEATURES, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168621; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,923, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEMS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168623; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,925, entitled JAW ACTUATED     LOCK ARRANGEMENTS FOR PREVENTING ADVANCEMENT OF A FIRING MEMBER IN A     SURGICAL END EFFECTOR UNLESS AN UNFIRED CARTRIDGE IS INSTALLED IN     THE END EFFECTOR, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168576; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,926, entitled AXIALLY     MOVABLE CLOSURE SYSTEM ARRANGEMENTS FOR APPLYING CLOSURE MOTIONS TO     JAWS OF SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168577; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,928, entitled PROTECTIVE     COVER ARRANGEMENTS FOR A JOINT INTERFACE BETWEEN A MOVABLE JAW AND     ACTUATOR SHAFT OF A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168578; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,930, entitled SURGICAL END     EFFECTOR WITH TWO SEPARATE COOPERATING OPENING FEATURES FOR OPENING     AND CLOSING END EFFECTOR JAWS, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2018/0168579; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,932, entitled ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL END EFFECTOR WITH ASYMMETRIC SHAFT ARRANGEMENT, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168628; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,933, entitled ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT WITH INDEPENDENT PIVOTABLE LINKAGE DISTAL OF AN     ARTICULATION LOCK, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2018/0168580; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,934, entitled ARTICULATION     LOCK ARRANGEMENTS FOR LOCKING AN END EFFECTOR IN AN ARTICULATED     POSITION IN RESPONSE TO ACTUATION OF A JAW CLOSURE SYSTEM, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168581; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,935, entitled LATERALLY     ACTUATABLE ARTICULATION LOCK ARRANGEMENTS FOR LOCKING AN END     EFFECTOR OF A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT IN AN ARTICULATED CONFIGURATION,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168582; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/385,936, entitled ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH ARTICULATION STROKE AMPLIFICATION     FEATURES, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2018/0168583; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/318,996, entitled FASTENER     CARTRIDGES INCLUDING EXTENSIONS HAVING DIFFERENT CONFIGURATIONS, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0297228; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/319,006, entitled FASTENER     CARTRIDGE COMPRISING FASTENER CAVITIES INCLUDING FASTENER CONTROL     FEATURES, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,010,324; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/318,991, entitled SURGICAL     FASTENER CARTRIDGES WITH DRIVER STABILIZING ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S.     Pat. No. 9,833,241; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/319,004, entitled SURGICAL END     EFFECTORS WITH FIRING ELEMENT MONITORING ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S. Pat.     No. 9,844,369; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/319,008, entitled FASTENER     CARTRIDGE COMPRISING NON-UNIFORM FASTENERS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2015/0297232; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/318,997, entitled FASTENER     CARTRIDGE COMPRISING DEPLOYABLE TISSUE ENGAGING MEMBERS, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0297229; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/319,002, entitled FASTENER     CARTRIDGE COMPRISING TISSUE CONTROL FEATURES, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,877,721; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/319,013, entitled FASTENER     CARTRIDGE ASSEMBLIES AND STAPLE RETAINER COVER ARRANGEMENTS, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2015/0297233; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/319,016, entitled FASTENER     CARTRIDGE INCLUDING A LAYER ATTACHED THERETO, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2015/0297235.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications that were filed on Jun. 24, 2016 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entireties:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/191,775, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGE COMPRISING WIRE STAPLES AND STAMPED STAPLES, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0367695; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/191,807, entitled STAPLING     SYSTEM FOR USE WITH WIRE STAPLES AND STAMPED STAPLES, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0367696; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/191,834, entitled STAMPED     STAPLES AND STAPLE CARTRIDGES USING THE SAME, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0367699; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/191,788, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGE COMPRISING OVERDRIVEN STAPLES, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2017/0367698; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/191,818, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGE COMPRISING OFFSET LONGITUDINAL STAPLE ROWS, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0367697.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications that were filed on Jun. 24, 2016 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entireties:

-   U.S. Design Patent Application Serial No. 29/569,218, entitled     SURGICAL FASTENER, now U.S. Design Pat. No. D826,405; -   U.S. Design Patent Application Serial No. 29/569,227, entitled     SURGICAL FASTENER, now U.S. Design Pat. No. D822,206; -   U.S. Design Patent Application Serial No. 29/569,259, entitled     SURGICAL FASTENER CARTRIDGE; and -   U.S. Design Patent Application Serial No. 29/569,264, entitled     SURGICAL FASTENER CARTRIDGE.

Applicant of the present application owns the following patent applications that were filed on Apr. 1, 2016 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,325, entitled METHOD FOR     OPERATING A SURGICAL STAPLING SYSTEM, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2017/0281171; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,321, entitled MODULAR     SURGICAL STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING A DISPLAY, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,271,851; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,326, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING A DISPLAY INCLUDING A RE-ORIENTABLE     DISPLAY FIELD, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2017/0281172; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,263, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT HANDLE ASSEMBLY WITH RECONFIGURABLE GRIP PORTION, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0281165; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,262, entitled ROTARY POWERED     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT WITH MANUALLY ACTUATABLE BAILOUT SYSTEM, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0281161; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,277, entitled SURGICAL     CUTTING AND STAPLING END EFFECTOR WITH ANVIL CONCENTRIC DRIVE     MEMBER, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0281166; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,296, entitled     INTERCHANGEABLE SURGICAL TOOL ASSEMBLY WITH A SURGICAL END EFFECTOR     THAT IS SELECTIVELY ROTATABLE ABOUT A SHAFT AXIS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281168; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,258, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING A SHIFTABLE TRANSMISSION, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281178; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,278, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM CONFIGURED TO PROVIDE SELECTIVE CUTTING OF TISSUE,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0281162; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,284, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING A CONTOURABLE SHAFT, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281186; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,295, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING A TISSUE COMPRESSION LOCKOUT, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0281187; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,300, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING AN UNCLAMPING LOCKOUT, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281179; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,196, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING A JAW CLOSURE LOCKOUT, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281183; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,203, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING A JAW ATTACHMENT LOCKOUT, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281184; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,210, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING A SPENT CARTRIDGE LOCKOUT, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0281185; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,324, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A SHIFTING MECHANISM, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281170; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,335, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENT COMPRISING MULTIPLE LOCKOUTS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281155; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,339, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2017/0281173; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,253, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM CONFIGURED TO APPLY ANNULAR ROWS OF STAPLES HAVING     DIFFERENT HEIGHTS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2017/0281177; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,304, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING A GROOVED FORMING POCKET, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281188; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,331, entitled ANVIL     MODIFICATION MEMBERS FOR SURGICAL STAPLERS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281180; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,336, entitled STAPLE     CARTRIDGES WITH ATRAUMATIC FEATURES, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2017/0281164; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,312, entitled CIRCULAR     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING AN INCISABLE TISSUE SUPPORT, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0281189; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,309, entitled CIRCULAR     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING ROTARY FIRING SYSTEM, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2017/0281169; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/089,349, entitled CIRCULAR     STAPLING SYSTEM COMPRISING LOAD CONTROL, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2017/0281174.

Applicant of the present application also owns the U.S. patent applications identified below which were filed on Dec. 30, 2015 which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/984,488, entitled MECHANISMS FOR     COMPENSATING FOR BATTERY PACK FAILURE IN POWERED SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2017/0189018; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/984,525, entitled MECHANISMS FOR     COMPENSATING FOR DRIVETRAIN FAILURE IN POWERED SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0189019; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/984,552, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH SEPARABLE MOTORS AND MOTOR CONTROL CIRCUITS, now     U.S. Pat. No. 10,265,068.

Applicant of the present application also owns the U.S. patent applications identified below which were filed on Feb. 9, 2016, which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/019,220, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT WITH ARTICULATING AND AXIALLY TRANSLATABLE END EFFECTOR,     now U.S. Pat. No. 10,245,029; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/019,228, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH MULTIPLE LINK ARTICULATION ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0224342; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/019,196, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT ARTICULATION MECHANISM WITH SLOTTED SECONDARY CONSTRAINT,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0224330; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/019,206, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH AN END EFFECTOR THAT IS HIGHLY ARTICULATABLE     RELATIVE TO AN ELONGATE SHAFT ASSEMBLY, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2017/0224331; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/019,215, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH NON-SYMMETRICAL ARTICULATION ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0224332; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/019,227, entitled ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH SINGLE ARTICULATION LINK ARRANGEMENTS, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0224334; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/019,235, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH TENSIONING ARRANGEMENTS FOR CABLE DRIVEN     ARTICULATION SYSTEMS, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,245,030; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/019,230, entitled ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH OFF-AXIS FIRING BEAM ARRANGEMENTS, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0224335; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/019,245, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH CLOSURE STROKE REDUCTION ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0224343.

Applicant of the present application also owns the U.S. patent applications identified below which were filed on Feb. 12, 2016, which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/043,254, entitled MECHANISMS FOR     COMPENSATING FOR DRIVETRAIN FAILURE IN POWERED SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS,     now U.S. Pat. No. 10,258,331; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/043,259, entitled MECHANISMS FOR     COMPENSATING FOR DRIVETRAIN FAILURE IN POWERED SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0231626; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/043,275, entitled MECHANISMS FOR     COMPENSATING FOR DRIVETRAIN FAILURE IN POWERED SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0231627; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/043,289, entitled MECHANISMS FOR     COMPENSATING FOR DRIVETRAIN FAILURE IN POWERED SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2017/0231628.

Applicant of the present application owns the following patent applications that were filed on Jun. 18, 2015 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/742,925, entitled SURGICAL END     EFFECTORS WITH POSITIVE JAW OPENING ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,182,818; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/742,941, entitled SURGICAL END     EFFECTORS WITH DUAL CAM ACTUATED JAW CLOSING FEATURES, now U.S. Pat.     No. 10,052,102; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/742,933, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENTS WITH LOCKOUT ARRANGEMENTS FOR PREVENTING FIRING     SYSTEM ACTUATION WHEN A CARTRIDGE IS SPENT OR MISSING, now U.S. Pat.     No. 10,154,841; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/742,914, entitled MOVABLE FIRING     BEAM SUPPORT ARRANGEMENTS FOR ARTICULATABLE SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0367255; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/742,900, entitled ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH COMPOSITE FIRING BEAM STRUCTURES WITH     CENTER FIRING SUPPORT MEMBER FOR ARTICULATION SUPPORT, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0367254; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/742,885, entitled DUAL     ARTICULATION DRIVE SYSTEM ARRANGEMENTS FOR ARTICULATABLE SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2016/0367246; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/742,876, entitled PUSH/PULL     ARTICULATION DRIVE SYSTEMS FOR ARTICULATABLE SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS,     now U.S. Pat. No. 10,178,992.

Applicant of the present application owns the following patent applications that were filed on Mar. 6, 2015 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,746, entitled POWERED     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,808,246; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,795, entitled MULTIPLE LEVEL     THRESHOLDS TO MODIFY OPERATION OF POWERED SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016/02561185; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,832, entitled ADAPTIVE     TISSUE COMPRESSION TECHNIQUES TO ADJUST CLOSURE RATES FOR MULTIPLE     TISSUE TYPES, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2016/0256154; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,935, entitled OVERLAID MULTI     SENSOR RADIO FREQUENCY (RF) ELECTRODE SYSTEM TO MEASURE TISSUE     COMPRESSION, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2016/0256071; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,831, entitled MONITORING     SPEED CONTROL AND PRECISION INCREMENTING OF MOTOR FOR POWERED     SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,895,148; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,859, entitled TIME DEPENDENT     EVALUATION OF SENSOR DATA TO DETERMINE STABILITY, CREEP, AND     VISCOELASTIC ELEMENTS OF MEASURES, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,052,044; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,817, entitled INTERACTIVE     FEEDBACK SYSTEM FOR POWERED SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,924,961; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,844, entitled CONTROL     TECHNIQUES AND SUB-PROCESSOR CONTAINED WITHIN MODULAR SHAFT WITH     SELECT CONTROL PROCESSING FROM HANDLE, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,045,776; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,837, entitled SMART SENSORS     WITH LOCAL SIGNAL PROCESSING, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,993,248; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,765, entitled SYSTEM FOR     DETECTING THE MIS-INSERTION OF A STAPLE CARTRIDGE INTO A SURGICAL     STAPLER, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0256160; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,799, entitled SIGNAL AND     POWER COMMUNICATION SYSTEM POSITIONED ON A ROTATABLE SHAFT, now U.S.     Pat. No. 9,901,342; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/640,780, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A LOCKABLE BATTERY HOUSING, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,245,033.

Applicant of the present application owns the following patent applications that were filed on Feb. 27, 2015, and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,576, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT SYSTEM COMPRISING AN INSPECTION STATION, now U.S. Pat.     No. 10,045,779; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,546, entitled SURGICAL     APPARATUS CONFIGURED TO ASSESS WHETHER A PERFORMANCE PARAMETER OF     THE SURGICAL APPARATUS IS WITHIN AN ACCEPTABLE PERFORMANCE BAND, now     U.S. Pat. No. 10,180,463; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,560, entitled SURGICAL     CHARGING SYSTEM THAT CHARGES AND/OR CONDITIONS ONE OR MORE     BATTERIES, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0249910; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,566, entitled CHARGING     SYSTEM THAT ENABLES EMERGENCY RESOLUTIONS FOR CHARGING A BATTERY,     now U.S. Pat. No. 10,182,816; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,555, entitled SYSTEM FOR     MONITORING WHETHER A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT NEEDS TO BE SERVICED, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2016/0249916; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,542, entitled REINFORCED     BATTERY FOR A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,931,118; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,548, entitled POWER ADAPTER     FOR A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,245,028; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,526, entitled ADAPTABLE     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT HANDLE, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,993,258; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,541, entitled MODULAR     STAPLING ASSEMBLY, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,226,250; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/633,562, entitled SURGICAL     APPARATUS CONFIGURED TO TRACK AN END-OF-LIFE PARAMETER, now U.S.     Pat. No. 10,159,483.

Applicant of the present application owns the following patent applications that were filed on Dec. 18, 2014 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/574,478, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT SYSTEMS COMPRISING AN ARTICULATABLE END EFFECTOR AND     MEANS FOR ADJUSTING THE FIRING STROKE OF A FIRING MEMBER, now U.S.     Pat. No. 9,844,374; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/574,483, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT ASSEMBLY COMPRISING LOCKABLE SYSTEMS, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,188,385; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/575,139, entitled DRIVE     ARRANGEMENTS FOR ARTICULATABLE SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Pat.     No. 9,844,375; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/575,148, entitled LOCKING     ARRANGEMENTS FOR DETACHABLE SHAFT ASSEMBLIES WITH ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL END EFFECTORS, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,085,748; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/575,130, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT WITH AN ANVIL THAT IS SELECTIVELY MOVABLE ABOUT A     DISCRETE NON-MOVABLE AXIS RELATIVE TO A STAPLE CARTRIDGE, now U.S.     Pat. No. 10,245,027; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/575,143, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH IMPROVED CLOSURE ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,004,501; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/575,117, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH ARTICULATABLE END EFFECTORS AND MOVABLE FIRING BEAM     SUPPORT ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,943,309; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/575,154, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS WITH ARTICULATABLE END EFFECTORS AND IMPROVED FIRING     BEAM SUPPORT ARRANGEMENTS, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,968,355; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/574,493, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A FLEXIBLE ARTICULATION SYSTEM, now     U.S. Pat. No. 9,987,000; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/574,500, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A LOCKABLE ARTICULATION SYSTEM, now     U.S. Pat. No. 10,117,649.

Applicant of the present application owns the following patent applications that were filed on Mar. 1, 2013 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,295, entitled Articulatable     Surgical Instruments With Conductive Pathways For Signal     Communication, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,700,309; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,323, entitled Rotary Powered     Articulation Joints For Surgical Instruments, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,782,169; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,338, entitled Thumbwheel     Switch Arrangements For Surgical Instruments, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2014/0249557; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,499, entitled     Electromechanical Surgical Device with Signal Relay Arrangement, now     U.S. Pat. No. 9,358,003; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,460, entitled Multiple     Processor Motor Control for Modular Surgical Instruments, now U.S.     Pat. No. 9,554,794; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,358, entitled Joystick     Switch Assemblies For Surgical Instruments, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,326,767; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,481, entitled Sensor     Straightened End Effector During Removal Through Trocar, now U.S.     Pat. No. 9,468,438; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,518, entitled Control     Methods for Surgical Instruments with Removable Implement Portions,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2014/0246475; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,375, entitled Rotary Powered     Surgical Instruments With Multiple Degrees of Freedom, now U.S. Pat.     No. 9,398,911; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/782,536, entitled Surgical     Instrument Soft Stop, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,307,986.

Applicant of the present application also owns the following patent applications that were filed on Mar. 14, 2013 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,097, entitled ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A FIRING DRIVE, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,687,230; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,193, entitled CONTROL     ARRANGEMENTS FOR A DRIVE MEMBER OF A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now U.S.     Pat. No. 9,332,987; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,053, entitled     INTERCHANGEABLE SHAFT ASSEMBLIES FOR USE WITH A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT,     now U.S. Pat. No. 9,883,860; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,086, entitled ARTICULATABLE     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT COMPRISING AN ARTICULATION LOCK, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2014/0263541; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,210, entitled SENSOR     ARRANGEMENTS FOR ABSOLUTE POSITIONING SYSTEM FOR SURGICAL     INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,808,244; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,148, entitled MULTI-FUNCTION     MOTOR FOR A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2014/0263554; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,066, entitled DRIVE SYSTEM     LOCKOUT ARRANGEMENTS FOR MODULAR SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Pat.     No. 9,629,623; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,117, entitled ARTICULATION     CONTROL SYSTEM FOR ARTICULATABLE SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Pat.     No. 9,351,726; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,130, entitled DRIVE TRAIN     CONTROL ARRANGEMENTS FOR MODULAR SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Pat.     No. 9,351,727; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 13/803,159, entitled METHOD AND     SYSTEM FOR OPERATING A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,888,919.

Applicant of the present application also owns the following patent application that was filed on Mar. 7, 2014 and is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/200,111, entitled CONTROL     SYSTEMS FOR SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,629,629.

Applicant of the present application also owns the following patent applications that were filed on Mar. 26, 2014 and are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,106, entitled POWER     MANAGEMENT CONTROL SYSTEMS FOR SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2015/0272582; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,099, entitled STERILIZATION     VERIFICATION CIRCUIT, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,826,977; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,094, entitled VERIFICATION     OF NUMBER OF BATTERY EXCHANGES/PROCEDURE COUNT, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2015/0272580; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,117, entitled POWER     MANAGEMENT THROUGH SLEEP OPTIONS OF SEGMENTED CIRCUIT AND WAKE UP     CONTROL, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,013,049; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,075, entitled MODULAR     POWERED SURGICAL INSTRUMENT WITH DETACHABLE SHAFT ASSEMBLIES, now     U.S. Pat. No. 9,743,929; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,093, entitled FEEDBACK     ALGORITHMS FOR MANUAL BAILOUT SYSTEMS FOR SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now     U.S. Pat. No. 10,028,761; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,116, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT UTILIZING SENSOR ADAPTATION, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2015/0272571; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,071, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT CONTROL CIRCUIT HAVING A SAFETY PROCESSOR, now U.S. Pat.     No. 9,690,362; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,097, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING INTERACTIVE SYSTEMS, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,820,738; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,126, entitled INTERFACE     SYSTEMS FOR USE WITH SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,004,497; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,133, entitled MODULAR     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT SYSTEM, now U.S. Patent Application Publication     No. 2015/0272557; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,081, entitled SYSTEMS AND     METHODS FOR CONTROLLING A SEGMENTED CIRCUIT, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,804,618; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,076, entitled POWER     MANAGEMENT THROUGH SEGMENTED CIRCUIT AND VARIABLE VOLTAGE     PROTECTION, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,733,663; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,111, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING INSTRUMENT SYSTEM, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,750,499; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/226,125, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A ROTATABLE SHAFT, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,201,364.

Applicant of the present application also owns the following patent applications that were filed on Sep. 5, 2014 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/479,103, entitled CIRCUITRY AND     SENSORS FOR POWERED MEDICAL DEVICE, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,111,679; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/479,119, entitled ADJUNCT WITH     INTEGRATED SENSORS TO QUANTIFY TISSUE COMPRESSION, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,724,094; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/478,908, entitled MONITORING     DEVICE DEGRADATION BASED ON COMPONENT EVALUATION, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,737,301; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/478,895, entitled MULTIPLE     SENSORS WITH ONE SENSOR AFFECTING A SECOND SENSOR'S OUTPUT OR     INTERPRETATION, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,757,128; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/479,110, entitled POLARITY OF     HALL MAGNET TO IDENTIFY CARTRIDGE TYPE, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,016,199; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/479,098, entitled SMART     CARTRIDGE WAKE UP OPERATION AND DATA RETENTION, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,135,242; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/479,115, entitled MULTIPLE MOTOR     CONTROL FOR POWERED MEDICAL DEVICE, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,788,836; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/479,108, entitled LOCAL DISPLAY     OF TISSUE PARAMETER STABILIZATION, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2016/0066913.

Applicant of the present application also owns the following patent applications that were filed on Apr. 9, 2014 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/248,590, entitled MOTOR DRIVEN     SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH LOCKABLE DUAL DRIVE SHAFTS, now U.S. Pat.     No. 9,826,976; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/248,581, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A CLOSING DRIVE AND A FIRING DRIVE OPERATED     FROM THE SAME ROTATABLE OUTPUT, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,649,110; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/248,595, entitled SURGICAL     SYSTEM COMPRISING FIRST AND SECOND DRIVE SYSTEMS, now U.S. Pat. No.     9,844,368; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/248,588, entitled POWERED LINEAR     SURGICAL STAPLER, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2014/0309666; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/248,591, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING A GAP SETTING SYSTEM, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,149,680; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/248,584, entitled MODULAR MOTOR     DRIVEN SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH ALIGNMENT FEATURES FOR ALIGNING     ROTARY DRIVE SHAFTS WITH SURGICAL END EFFECTOR SHAFTS, now U.S. Pat.     No. 9,801,626; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/248,587, entitled POWERED     SURGICAL STAPLER, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,867,612; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/248,586, entitled DRIVE SYSTEM     DECOUPLING ARRANGEMENT FOR A SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Pat. No.     10,136,887; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/248,607, entitled MODULAR MOTOR     DRIVEN SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS WITH STATUS INDICATION ARRANGEMENTS, now     U.S. Pat. No. 9,814,460.

Applicant of the present application also owns the following patent applications that were filed on Apr. 16, 2013 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entirety:

-   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/812,365, entitled     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT WITH MULTIPLE FUNCTIONS PERFORMED BY A SINGLE     MOTOR; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/812,376, entitled     LINEAR CUTTER WITH POWER; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/812,382, entitled     LINEAR CUTTER WITH MOTOR AND PISTOL GRIP; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/812,385, entitled     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT HANDLE WITH MULTIPLE ACTUATION MOTORS AND MOTOR     CONTROL; and -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/812,372, entitled     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT WITH MULTIPLE FUNCTIONS PERFORMED BY A SINGLE     MOTOR.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. Provisional Patent Applications, filed on Dec. 28, 2017, the disclosure of each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/611,341, entitled     INTERACTIVE SURGICAL PLATFORM; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/611,340, entitled     CLOUD-BASED MEDICAL ANALYTICS; and -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/611,339, entitled     ROBOT ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORM.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. Provisional Patent Applications, filed on Mar. 28, 2018, each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,302, entitled     INTERACTIVE SURGICAL SYSTEMS WITH encrypted COMMUNICATION     CAPABILITIES; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,294, entitled     DATA STRIPPING METHOD TO INTERROGATE PATIENT RECORDS AND CREATE     ANONYMIZED RECORD; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,300, entitled     SURGICAL HUB SITUATIONAL AWARENESS; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,309, entitled     SURGICAL HUB SPATIAL AWARENESS TO DETERMINE DEVICES IN OPERATING     THEATER; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,310, entitled     COMPUTER IMPLEMENTED INTERACTIVE SURGICAL SYSTEMS; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,291, entitled     USE OF LASER LIGHT AND RED-GREEN-BLUE COLORATION TO DETERMINE     PROPERTIES OF BACK SCATTERED LIGHT; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,296, entitled     ADAPTIVE CONTROL PROGRAM UPDATES FOR SURGICAL DEVICES; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,333, entitled     CLOUD-BASED MEDICAL ANALYTICS FOR CUSTOMIZATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS     TO A USER; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,327, entitled     CLOUD-BASED MEDICAL ANALYTICS FOR SECURITY AND AUTHENTICATION TRENDS     AND REACTIVE MEASURES; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,315, entitled     DATA HANDLING AND PRIORITIZATION IN A CLOUD ANALYTICS NETWORK; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,313, entitled     CLOUD INTERFACE FOR COUPLED SURGICAL DEVICES; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,320, entitled     DRIVE ARRANGEMENTS FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS; -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,307, entitled     AUTOMATIC TOOL ADJUSTMENTS FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS;     and -   U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/649,323, entitled     SENSING ARRANGEMENTS FOR Robot-Assisted Surgical PlatformS.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications, filed on Mar. 29, 2018, each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,641, entitled INTERACTIVE     SURGICAL SYSTEMS WITH encrypted COMMUNICATION CAPABILITIES; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,648, entitled INTERACTIVE     SURGICAL SYSTEMS WITH CONDITION HANDLING OF DEVICES AND DATA     CAPABILITIES; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,656, entitled Surgical hub     coordination of control and communication of operating room devices; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,666, entitled Spatial     awareness of surgical hubs in operating rooms; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,670, entitled Cooperative     utilization of data derived from secondary sources by intelligent     surgical hubs; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,677, entitled Surgical hub     control arrangements; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,632, entitled DATA STRIPPING     METHOD TO INTERROGATE PATIENT RECORDS AND CREATE ANONYMIZED RECORD; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,640, entitled COMMUNICATION     HUB AND STORAGE DEVICE FOR STORING PARAMETERS AND STATUS OF A     SURGICAL DEVICE TO BE SHAREd WITH CLOUD BASED ANALYTICS SYSTEMS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,645, entitled SELF     DESCRIBING DATA PACKETS GENERATED AT AN ISSUING INSTRUMENT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,649, entitled DATA PAIRING     TO INTERCONNECT A DEVICE MEASURED PARAMETER WITH AN OUTCOME; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,654, entitled SURGICAL HUB     SITUATIONAL AWARENESS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,663, entitled SURGICAL     SYSTEM DISTRIBUTED PROCESSING; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,668, entitled AGGREGATION     AND REPORTING OF SURGICAL HUB DATA; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,671, entitled SURGICAL HUB     SPATIAL AWARENESS TO DETERMINE DEVICES IN OPERATING THEATER; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,686, entitled DISPLAY OF     ALIGNMENT OF STAPLE CARTRIDGE TO PRIOR LINEAR STAPLE LINE; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,700, entitled STERILE FIELD     INTERACTIVE CONTROL DISPLAYS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,629, entitled COMPUTER     IMPLEMENTED INTERACTIVE SURGICAL SYSTEMS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,704, entitled USE OF LASER     LIGHT AND RED-GREEN-BLUE COLORATION TO DETERMINE PROPERTIES OF BACK     SCATTERED LIGHT; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,722, entitled     CHARACTERIZATION OF TISSUE IRREGULARITIES THROUGH THE USE OF     MONO-CHROMATIC LIGHT REFRACTIVITY; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,742, entitled DUAL CMOS     ARRAY IMAGING.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications, filed on Mar. 29, 2018, each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,636, entitled ADAPTIVE     CONTROL PROGRAM UPDATES FOR SURGICAL DEVICES; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,653, entitled ADAPTIVE     CONTROL PROGRAM UPDATES FOR SURGICAL HUBS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,660, entitled CLOUD-BASED     MEDICAL ANALYTICS FOR CUSTOMIZATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS TO A USER; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,679, entitled CLOUD-BASED     MEDICAL ANALYTICS FOR LINKING OF LOCAL USAGE TRENDS WITH THE     RESOURCE ACQUISITION BEHAVIORS OF LARGER DATA SET; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,694, entitled Cloud-based     Medical Analytics for Medical Facility Segmented Individualization     of Instrument Function; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,634, entitled CLOUD-BASED     MEDICAL ANALYTICS FOR SECURITY AND AUTHENTICATION TRENDS AND     REACTIVE MEASURES; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,706, entitled DATA HANDLING     AND PRIORITIZATION IN A CLOUD ANALYTICS NETWORK; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,675, entitled CLOUD     INTERFACE FOR COUPLED SURGICAL DEVICES.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications, filed on Mar. 29, 2018, each of which is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,627, entitled DRIVE     ARRANGEMENTS FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMs; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,637, entitled COMMUNICATION     ARRANGEMENTS FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,642, entitled CONTROLS FOR     ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,676, entitled AUTOMATIC TOOL     ADJUSTMENTS FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,680, entitled CONTROLLERS     FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,683, entitled COOPERATIVE     SURGICAL ACTIONS FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,690, entitled DISPLAY     ARRANGEMENTS FOR ROBOT-ASSISTED SURGICAL PLATFORMS; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/940,711, entitled SENSING     ARRANGEMENTS FOR Robot-Assisted Surgical Platforms.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications that were filed on Jun. 30, 2019 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entireties:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,104, entitled METHOD FOR     AUTHENTICATING THE COMPATIBILITY OF A STAPLE CARTRIDGE WITH A     SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No.     2020/0405301; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,108, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT SYSTEM COMPRISING AN RFID SYSTEM, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2020/0405436; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,111, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING AN RFID SYSTEM FOR TRACKING A MOVABLE     COMPONENT, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405437; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,114, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT COMPRISING AN ALIGNED RFID SENSOR, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2020/0405438; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,105, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM HAVING AN INFORMATION DECRYPTION PROTOCOL, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405302; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,110, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM HAVING AN INFORMATION ENCRYPTION PROTOCOL, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405297; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,120, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM HAVING A LOCKOUT MECHANISM FOR AN INCOMPATIBLE     CARTRIDGE, now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405303; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,125, entitled SURGICAL     STAPLING SYSTEM HAVING A FRANGIBLE RFID TAG, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2020/0405441; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,103, entitled PACKAGING FOR     A REPLACEABLE COMPONENT OF A SURGICAL STAPLING SYSTEM, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405296.

Applicant of the present application owns the following U.S. patent applications that were filed on Jun. 30, 2019 and which are each herein incorporated by reference in their respective entireties:

-   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,107, entitled METHOD OF     USING MULTIPLE RFID CHIPS WITH A SURGICAL ASSEMBLY, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2020/0405311; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,109, entitled MECHANISMS FOR     PROPER ANVIL ATTACHMENT SURGICAL STAPLING HEAD ASSEMBLY, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405312; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,119, entitled MECHANISMS FOR     MOTOR CONTROL ADJUSTMENTS OF A MOTORIZED SURGICAL INSTRUMENT, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405314; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,115, entitled SURGICAL     INSTRUMENT WITH BATTERY COMPATIBILITY VERIFICATION FUNCTIONALITY,     now U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405313; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,117, entitled SURGICAL     SYSTEM WITH RFID TAGS FOR UPDATING MOTOR ASSEMBLY PARAMETERS, now     U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405439; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,121, entitled SURGICAL     SYSTEMS WITH MULTIPLE RFID TAGS, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2020/0405440; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,122, entitled RFID     IDENTIFICATION SYSTEMS FOR SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2020/0410177; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,106, entitled RFID     IDENTIFICATION SYSTEMS FOR SURGICAL INSTRUMENTS, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2020/0405316; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,112, entitled SURGICAL RFID     ASSEMBLIES FOR DISPLAY AND COMMUNICATION, now U.S. Patent     Application Publication No. 2020/0405409; -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,116, entitled SURGICAL RFID     ASSEMBLIES FOR COMPATIBILITY DETECTION, now U.S. Patent Application     Publication No. 2020/0410180; and -   U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/458,118, entitled SURGICAL RFID     ASSEMBLIES FOR INSTRUMENT OPERATIONAL SETTING CONTROL, now U.S.     Patent Application Publication No. 2020/0405410.

Numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the overall structure, function, manufacture, and use of the embodiments as described in the specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Well-known operations, components, and elements have not been described in detail so as not to obscure the embodiments described in the specification. The reader will understand that the embodiments described and illustrated herein are non-limiting examples, and thus it can be appreciated that the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein may be representative and illustrative. Variations and changes thereto may be made without departing from the scope of the claims.

The terms “comprise” (and any form of comprise, such as “comprises” and “comprising”), “have” (and any form of have, such as “has” and “having”), “include” (and any form of include, such as “includes” and “including”) and “contain” (and any form of contain, such as “contains” and “containing”) are open-ended linking verbs. As a result, a surgical system, device, or apparatus that “comprises,” “has,” “includes” or “contains” one or more elements possesses those one or more elements, but is not limited to possessing only those one or more elements. Likewise, an element of a system, device, or apparatus that “comprises,” “has,” “includes” or “contains” one or more features possesses those one or more features, but is not limited to possessing only those one or more features.

The terms “proximal” and “distal” are used herein with reference to a clinician manipulating the handle portion of the surgical instrument. The term “proximal” refers to the portion closest to the clinician and the term “distal” refers to the portion located away from the clinician. It will be further appreciated that, for convenience and clarity, spatial terms such as “vertical”, “horizontal”, “up”, and “down” may be used herein with respect to the drawings. However, surgical instruments are used in many orientations and positions, and these terms are not intended to be limiting and/or absolute.

Various exemplary devices and methods are provided for performing laparoscopic and minimally invasive surgical procedures. However, the reader will readily appreciate that the various methods and devices disclosed herein can be used in numerous surgical procedures and applications including, for example, in connection with open surgical procedures. As the present Detailed Description proceeds, the reader will further appreciate that the various instruments disclosed herein can be inserted into a body in any way, such as through a natural orifice, through an incision or puncture hole formed in tissue, etc. The working portions or end effector portions of the instruments can be inserted directly into a patient's body or can be inserted through an access device that has a working channel through which the end effector and elongate shaft of a surgical instrument can be advanced.

A surgical stapling system can comprise a shaft and an end effector extending from the shaft. The end effector comprises a first jaw and a second jaw. The first jaw comprises a staple cartridge. The staple cartridge is insertable into and removable from the first jaw; however, other embodiments are envisioned in which a staple cartridge is not removable from, or at least readily replaceable from, the first jaw. The second jaw comprises an anvil configured to deform staples ejected from the staple cartridge. The second jaw is pivotable relative to the first jaw about a closure axis; however, other embodiments are envisioned in which the first jaw is pivotable relative to the second jaw. The surgical stapling system further comprises an articulation joint configured to permit the end effector to be rotated, or articulated, relative to the shaft. The end effector is rotatable about an articulation axis extending through the articulation joint. Other embodiments are envisioned which do not include an articulation joint.

The staple cartridge comprises a cartridge body. The cartridge body includes a proximal end, a distal end, and a deck extending between the proximal end and the distal end. In use, the staple cartridge is positioned on a first side of the tissue to be stapled and the anvil is positioned on a second side of the tissue. The anvil is moved toward the staple cartridge to compress and clamp the tissue against the deck. Thereafter, staples removably stored in the cartridge body can be deployed into the tissue. The cartridge body includes staple cavities defined therein wherein staples are removably stored in the staple cavities. The staple cavities are arranged in six longitudinal rows. Three rows of staple cavities are positioned on a first side of a longitudinal slot and three rows of staple cavities are positioned on a second side of the longitudinal slot. Other arrangements of staple cavities and staples may be possible.

The staples are supported by staple drivers in the cartridge body. The drivers are movable between a first, or unfired position, and a second, or fired, position to eject the staples from the staple cavities. The drivers are retained in the cartridge body by a retainer which extends around the bottom of the cartridge body and includes resilient members configured to grip the cartridge body and hold the retainer to the cartridge body. The drivers are movable between their unfired positions and their fired positions by a sled. The sled is movable between a proximal position adjacent the proximal end and a distal position adjacent the distal end. The sled comprises a plurality of ramped surfaces configured to slide under the drivers and lift the drivers, and the staples supported thereon, toward the anvil.

Further to the above, the sled is moved distally by a firing member. The firing member is configured to contact the sled and push the sled toward the distal end. The longitudinal slot defined in the cartridge body is configured to receive the firing member. The anvil also includes a slot configured to receive the firing member. The firing member further comprises a first cam which engages the first jaw and a second cam which engages the second jaw. As the firing member is advanced distally, the first cam and the second cam can control the distance, or tissue gap, between the deck of the staple cartridge and the anvil. The firing member also comprises a knife configured to incise the tissue captured intermediate the staple cartridge and the anvil. It is desirable for the knife to be positioned at least partially proximal to the ramped surfaces such that the staples are ejected ahead of the knife.

Modular energy systems can be assembled from a variety of different modules. Each of the different types of modules can provide different functionality, thereby allowing the modular energy system to be assembled into different configurations to customize the functions and capabilities of the modular energy system by customizing the modules that are included in each modular energy system. The modules of the modular energy system can include, for example, a header module (which can include a display screen), an energy module, a technology module, and a visualization module. The energy module, which can also be referred to as a generator module, can be configured to generate one or multiple energy modalities for driving electrosurgical and/or ultrasonic surgical instruments connected thereto. The various modular components utilizable in connection with a modular energy system can include monopolar energy generators, bipolar energy generators, dual electrosurgical/ultrasonic energy generators, display screens, and various other modules and/or other components.

A generator module can be configured to provide RF and ultrasonic signals for delivering energy to an electro-surgical instrument either independently or simultaneously. The RF and ultrasonic signals may be provided alone or in combination and may be provided simultaneously. At least one generator output can deliver multiple energy modalities (e.g., ultrasonic, bipolar or monopolar RF, irreversible and/or reversible electroporation, and/or microwave energy, among others) through a single port, and these signals can be delivered separately or simultaneously to the end effector to treat tissue.

The present disclosure focuses on the difficulty of using a liquid proof o-ring to seal a modular attachment of an electrical surgical instrument and effectively communicating signals from an end effector to a handle assembly through a shaft of the surgical instrument extending between the end effector and the handle assembly. The liquid proof o-ring is utilized to provide protection against saline from entering the electronics of the surgical instrument. Saline is ubiquitous in a surgical environment but can cause cross communication, electrical shorts, and corrosion in the connections of the electrical surgical instrument.

Solutions that rely on passing wires between the handle assembly and the shaft interfere with the ability of the shaft to rotate relative to the handle assembly, which reduces the maneuverability of the surgical instrument. While using electrical slip rings may reclaim the rotational freedom of the shaft relative to the handle assembly, the cost is a greater chance of exposure to saline.

In various aspects, the present disclosure provides a control circuit that connects directly to the shaft of the modular attachment (and rotates with the shaft) and wirelessly communicates with the main electronics in the handle assembly. The liquid proof o-ring provides a barrier between the control circuit and operating room fluids while still allowing the control circuit to communicate with the handle assembly. However, using a wireless connection between the control circuit and the handle electronics may create power and security issues. The control circuit must have its own power source that is separate from the handle assembly, and the power source must reliably deliver power throughout the duration of a surgery. Additionally, the wireless connection raises security concerns that may directly impact the health of a patient and can be susceptible to interception.

The present disclosure describes various aspect of a surgical instrument that employs a sealed liquid proof barrier, secure wireless communication, and efficient power source.

The present disclosure describes a surgical instrument comprising a modular attachment and a handle assembly. The modular attachment is one of several different surgical instruments that are compatible to removably couple to the handle assembly. This design allows the same handle assembly to be used with a plurality of different modular attachments such as an end effector, ultrasonic blade, stapler, monopolar and bipolar RF energy, etc. The handle assembly is configured to send operational instructions to the modular attachment and receive sensor parameters from the modular attachment. These signals are traditionally sent over physical communication wires and require a wired connection point between the handle assembly and the modular attachment. However, the present disclosure provides various aspects for wireless communication between the modular attachment and the handle assembly.

While the various aspects of the present disclosure are discussed in connection with a modular surgical instrument, it is understood that many inventions and features of the present disclosure can be equally implemented in a non-modular surgical instrument or a robotic surgical instrument.

FIG. 1 illustrates a surgical instrument 100 comprising a modular attachment 110 removably coupleable with a handle assembly 120. The handle assembly 120 comprises a user input interface 134 and a user actuated trigger 136. In various aspects, the user input interface 134 comprises a touchscreen, push buttons, switches, haptic touch buttons, etc. The modular attachment 110 further comprises a shaft 106, a connection nozzle 116, and surgical instrument 100, which is illustratively depicted as an end effector 102.

FIG. 2 illustrates a detailed view of the end effector 102 that includes first and second jaw members 104 with an embedded sensor array 108. The sensor array 108 comprises a plurality of sensors embedded in the jaw members 104 of the end effector 102. The sensors are configured to receive input parameters from the patient tissue and represent the input parameters as a frequency or voltage. Such input parameters include tissue position, tissue impedance, tissue moisture content, tissue temperature, etc.

FIG. 3 illustrates a cutaway view of a surgical instrument 100 comprising a modular attachment 110 that removably couples with a handle assembly 120. The cutaway portion of the handle assembly 120 shows a handle assembly control circuit 140 that further comprises a wireless transceiver 146. The modular attachment 110 comprises a shaft 106, connection nozzle 116, modular attachment control circuit 130, and communication bus 118. The interior of the connection nozzle 116 houses the electrical communication components of the modular attachment 110 including the control circuit 130. The modular attachment control circuit 130 comprises a power source 112 and a wireless transceiver 114 that may wirelessly communicate with the wireless transceiver 146 of the handle assembly 120.

The electrical components of the control circuit 130 may be situated in various configurations to accommodate their physical footprint within the connection nozzle 116. The control circuit 130 may be configured as a single unit or may be divided into a plurality of components based on the available footprint within the connection nozzle 116. Additionally, the control circuit 130 is configured to physically attach to the shaft 106 of the modular attachment 110.

As illustrated in FIG. 3 , attachment of the control circuit 130 to the shaft does not hinder the rotation of the modular attachment 110 relative to the handle assembly 120. FIG. 3 illustrates a rotation 122 of the shaft 106 that causes the control circuit 130 to move internally with the shaft 106. The control circuit 130 is designed to rotate with the shaft 106 in order to maintain a connection with the sensor array 108 over the communication bus 118.

In the illustrated example, the control circuit 130 is positioned at a proximal portion of the attachment module 110, while the control circuit 140 is positioned at a distal portion of the handle assembly 120. This arrangement allows the control circuits 130, 140 to be in sufficiently close proximity to each other to ensure a reliable wireless interaction between the wireless transceivers 114, 146. Moreover, in certain aspects, the wireless transceivers 114, 146 can be placed in overlapping portions of the modular attachments 110 and the handle assembly 120. In such instances, the wireless transceivers 114, 146 can be longitudinally at the same, or substantially the same, location, which further reduces their separation.

In certain aspects, only the wireless transceiver 114 is located in the connection nozzle 116, while the remaining components of the control circuit 130 are positioned distal to the connection nozzle 116. A wire connection may be extended proximally through a portion of the shaft 106 to the wireless transceiver 114 in the connection nozzle 116.

FIG. 4 . Illustrates a communication bus 118 that communicably couples a sensor array 108 of the end effector 102 with the modular attachment control circuit 130. The communication bus 118 runs along the length of the shaft 106 and is configured to rotate with end effector 102 and the control circuit 130. The sensor array 108 is configured to detect tissue parameters such as tissue impedance, tissue frequency response, tissue temperature, tissue composition, tissue position, end effector clamp pressure, etc. In various aspects, the sensor array 108 is configured to detect an ultrasonic transducer resonant frequency and can be used to infer blade temperature, tissue temperature, composition, etc. The senor array 108 is configured to represent the detected sensor parameters as an analog or digital signal and communicate the signals along the communication bus 118 to the control circuit 130.

FIG. 5 illustrates a block diagram of a surgical instrument 200 similar in many respects, not repeated herein for brevity, to other surgical instruments described elsewhere in the present disclosure such as, for example, the surgical instrument 100. The surgical instrument 200 includes a control circuit 230 of a modular attachment surgical instrument 210 that is configurable to wirelessly communicate with a control circuit 240 of a handle assembly 220.

In various aspects, the modular attachment 210 further includes an end effector control circuit 212, and a power control circuit 250. In the illustrated example, the modular attachment control circuit 230 includes a main processor or microcontroller unit (MCU) 232, safety processor/MCU 238, short range wireless (SRW) communication processor/MCU 234, and wireless transceiver 236. In other examples, however, the control circuit 230 may not include a safety processor.

In various aspects, the modular attachment control circuit 230 is communicably coupled to the sensor array 216 and/or the end effector control circuit 214. The MA control circuit 230 is configured to receive input parameters generated by the sensor array 216 and transmit operational instructions to an end effector control circuit 214, over a communication bus 218. In certain instances, the end effector control circuit 214 communicates with a motor control, or motor drive, that causes one or more motors to effect at least motion of the end effector 102 based on the operational instructions from the control circuit 230. In another aspect, the end effector control circuit 214 communicates with the sensor array 216 to adjust one or more settings thereof, for example, and/or to retrieve one or more readings obtained by the sensors of the sensor array 216, for example.

In certain instances, the end effector control circuit 214 is removed. In such instances, the sensor array 216 may communicate directly with the MA control circuit 230, for example.

The handle assembly unit 220 includes a handle assembly (HA) control circuit 240, user interface 202, and power control circuit 250. In various aspects, the handle assembly control circuit 220 further comprises a main processor or MCU 242, SRW communication processor/MCU 244, and wireless transceiver 246. The handle assembly control circuit 240 is communicably coupled to an I/O interface 204 and a user actuated trigger 206 of the user interface 202. The HA control circuit 240 is configured to receive operational instructions from the I/O interface 204 and user actuated trigger 206, and transmit the operational instructions to the MA control circuit 230, over a bi-directional wireless connection 222. The operational instructions may include commands by the user actuated trigger 206 and/or commands by the I/O interface 204. The various commands can include, for example, commands that adjust various configurations of the modular attachment 210. In at least one example, the commands can include commands to configure the modular attachment 210 to detect specific parameters utilizing the sensor array 108, for example.

The bi-directional wireless connection 222 is an internal wireless connection within the surgical instrument 200 and is used to communicate all sensor inputs and end effector instructions between the transceivers 236, 246. In the illustrated example, the bi-directional wireless communication 222 is a short range wireless (SRW) communication protocol such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi (802.11), ZigBee, ultra-wideband (UWB), near field communication (NFC), etc. In various aspects, the SRW MCU 234 of the control circuit 230 is configured to lock and unlock the SRW communication broadcast based on the validation of a unique passcode. In other aspects, the SRW MCU 234 may further lock the SRW communication broadcast based on the expiration of a predetermined timeout period. The predetermined timeout period can, for example, be set based on a safe-use parameter of the surgical instrument 200. In other instances, SRW MCU 234 may further lock the SRW communication broadcast based on a predetermined number of uses of the surgical instrument 200.

In another aspect, as illustrated in FIG. 6 , a modular attachment 210′, similar in many respects to the modular attachment 210, which are not repeated herein for brevity, can be configured to wirelessly communicates with both internal devices within the handle assembly 220 and external devices 280 such as a surgical hub, for example, where connection 224 is an external connection.

The wireless communication may be encoded as a universal asynchronous retriever transmitter (UART) communication. UART communications are used for serial communication of hardware commands. The main MCU 232 of the modular attachment 210 may be configured to encode and decode UART communication signals sent and received to the handle assembly. Additionally, the handle assembly control circuit 230 may be configured to encode the operational instructions, sent to the modular attachment control circuit 210, with UART communication.

Due to the security concerns associated with wireless communication and sensitivity of surgical instrument information, the present disclosure describes two simultaneous locking systems for a surgical instrument. In various aspects, a modular attachment enables both SRW communication broadcasts and UART encoding in order to send monitoring data and receive operational control data. In various examples, the SRW broadcast is enabled before the UART encoding so that a wireless connection can be established between the modular attachment and the handle assembly. Once the SRW connection is established, the handle assembly transmits a unique passcode to enable a safety MCU to enable UART communication encoding and decoding.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flow diagram 300 for enabling a SRW broadcast by a modular attachment 210 configured with an induction power transfer circuit 256, and establishing a SRW connection with a handle assembly 220. In the present aspect, the modular attachment 210 is powered by a power source 254 that is charged through an induction power transfer circuit 256, as illustrated in FIG. 5 . An operator of the handle assembly 220 initiates 302 an I/O command to activate the SRW broadcast by the modular attachment 210. The I/O command 302 may require a special code or combination to initiate the SRW connection request. The HA control circuit 240 receives the I/O command 302 and configures 304 the HA power source 264 to energize 306 the induction power transfer circuit 266.

When the handle assembly 220 and the modular attachment 210 are physically coupled together, the induction power transfer circuit 266 of the handle assembly 220 and the induction power transfer circuit 256 of the modular attachment 210 are physically positioned within a predetermined distance of one another. The predetermined distance allows the induction power transfer circuit 266 of the handle assembly 220 to effectuate an efficient wireless power transfer to the modular attachment 210. If the distance between the induction circuits 256, 266 is too large, the power transfer may result in high power losses or be ineffective to transfer power at all.

In various aspects, the induction power transfer circuit 266 includes a first coil that induces 308 an electromagnetic current in a second coil the induction power transfer circuit 256. In response to receiving a wireless power transfer, the induction power transfer circuit 256 of the MA 210 charges 310 the power source 254 at the first voltage. The power source 254 may include a rechargeable energy storage cell such as a rechargeable battery or capacitor. Additionally, the power source 254 powers 310 the MA control circuit 230 at a first voltage sufficient to enable the SRW broadcast but less than the operational voltage necessary to operate the modular attachment 210. For example, the first voltage may not be sufficient to adjust one or more parameters of an effector of the modular attachment 210. In one instance, the first voltage may not be sufficient to operate a sensor array of the end effector.

In various aspects, the safety MCU 238 receives 312 a voltage measurement from the power source 254 and determines whether the specific voltage is sufficient to temporarily power the control circuit 230 and enable a SRW broadcast. Upon validation 314 of the power source voltage, the safety MCU transmits 316 a confirmation message to the main MCU 232. The main MCU 232 then sends 318 a message to the SRW MCU 234 to enable the SRW broadcast. The SRW MCU 234 then enables 320 SRW broadcast and initiates 322 a wireless bi-directional communication with the HA control circuit 240.

FIG. 8 illustrates a flow diagram 400 for enabling a SRW broadcast by a modular attachment 210′ with an external power station 468. The modular power attachment 210′ is similar in many respect to the modular attachment 210, which are not repeated herein for brevity. In the present aspect, a temporary power source 258 powers the modular attachment 210′, as shown in FIG. 5 . In the illustrated example, the external power station 468 connects 402 to the modular attachment 210′ at the temporary power source 258 and provides 404 a first voltage to the power source 254. The first voltage is sufficient to power the MA control circuit 230 and generate a SRW broadcast, but less than the operational voltage necessary to operate the modular attachment 210′. For example, the first voltage may not be sufficient to adjust one or more parameters of an effector of the modular attachment 210′. In one instance, the first voltage may not be sufficient to operate a sensor array of the end effector.

Referring still to FIG. 8 , the safety MCU 238 receives 406 a voltage measurement from the power source 254 and determines whether the specific voltage is sufficient to temporarily power the control circuit 230 and generate a SRW broadcast. Upon validation 408 of the power source voltage, the safety MCU transmits 410 a confirmation message to the main MCU 232. The main MCU 232 sends 412 a message to the SRW MCU 234 to enable the SRW broadcast.

Further to the above, the SRW MCU 234 enables 414 SRW broadcast and initiates 416 a wireless bi-directional communication with the HA control circuit 240. Once the bi-direction wireless connection is established, the safety MCU 238 may initiate a power command to transition to the main power source 254, or wait to initiate the power command until the unique passcode is validated.

In various aspects, the modular attachment control circuit 230 requires a unique passcode to enable the UART communication encoding. A manufacturer such as a chip supplier, printed circuit board assembler, or modular attachment manufacturer may assign the unique passcode during the manufacturing process. The manufacturer may connect the modular attachment control circuit 230 to a programming station and assign a unique passcode by flashing the SRW MCU 234. The programing station may generate the unique passcode according to a hash algorithm such as SHA-1, SHA-2, SHA-3, etc. Once the unique passcode is generated and assigned, the programming station may store the unique passcode on a server or make the passcode available to the module attachment operator in the form of physical media, server location, or pin or push-button combination, for example.

After the SRW MCU 234 is flashed and programmed, manufacturer may test the control circuit 230. The programming station enables the SRW broadcasting functionality of the modular attachment control circuit 230 to verify that the SRW broadcasting is functioning properly. Once the SRW broadcasting functionality is verified, the manufacturer finishes the assembly process of the module attachment and connects the module attachment to the programming station. Upon connecting to the programming station, the modular attachment is unlocked and SRW broadcasting is disabled so that the device may be packaged and shipped to an end user or distributor.

FIG. 9 illustrates a flow diagram 500 for enabling UART encoding and sending and receiving end effector signals over the SRW connection. The SRW MCU 234 of the control circuit 230 establishes 502 the bi-direction wireless communication with the HA control circuit 240, as described above. Once the bi-direction wireless communication is established, the HA control circuit 240 is configured to provide a unique passcode to unlock to the MA control circuit 230. Once the unique passcode is authenticated the main MCU 232 enables the UART encoding functionality. The HA control circuit 240 receives 504 the unique passcode from the I/O interface 202. The I/O interface 202 may receive the passcode through physical media (e.g. smart card, encryption token), external wired or wireless connection with a server or surgical hub, or a locally entered pin or push-button combination (e.g. up, down, left, right, up, down).

The HA control circuit 240 transmits 506 the unique passcode to the SRW MCU 234, where the SRW MCU 234 acts as a receiving hub for the modular attachment 210. The SRW MCU 234 manages the input and output communications between the HA control circuit 240 and the MA internal processors, specifically the main MCU 232 and safety MCU 238. The MA SRW MCU 234 may prepend internal communications with a prefix, such as “s_”, “m_”, and “w_”, corresponding to the safety MCU 238, main MCU 232, and SRW MCU 234 respectively, to designate the internal destination. Upon receiving an incoming communication, the SRW MCU 234 inspects the message, determines an appropriate destination, optionally modifies the communication by adding or a removing a destination prefix, and forwards the communication to the appropriate processor destination.

Referring still to FIG. 9 , the SRW MCU 234 receives 506 the unique passcode communication and internally routes 508 the communication to the safety MCU 238. The safety MCU 238 validates 510 the unique passcode and sends 512 a communication to the main MCU 232 confirming that the pass code was validated. In response to the confirmation message, the main MCU 232 enables 514 UART encoding and sends a message to the power control circuit 250 to operate the power source at a second voltage. The power control circuit 250 provides 518 the second voltage to the end effector control circuit 214. The second voltage comprises a predetermined voltage that is greater than the first voltage and enables the end effector assembly to operate with full functionality.

Once the end effector assembly is fully functional, the modular attachment 210 may be used in a surgical procedure. The sensor array 216 receives input parameters from the patient and transmits 520 the representative signals to the main MCU 232. The main MCU 232 encodes the signals using UART and transmits 522 the communication to the SRW MCU 234. The SRW MCU 234 wirelessly transmits the communication over the bi-directional SRW connection to the HA control circuit 240.

Similarly, the handle assembly 220 may transmit operational instructions over the bi-directional SRW connection to control and operate the end effector 102. The I/O interface 202 receives user inputs from the user actuated trigger 206 and provides the corresponding operational instructions to the HA control circuit 240. The control circuit 240 encodes the communication and transmits 528 the communication over the bi-directional WSR connection. The SRW MCU 234 designates the incoming communication as “m_” and forwards 530 the communication to the main MCU 232. The main MCU 232 decodes the communication and transmits 532 the decoded operation instructions to the end effector control circuit 214.

FIG. 10 illustrates an aspect of a modular attachment 210 that is powered by a power source 254 as part of the modular attachment power control circuit 250. The power control circuit 250 optionally comprises a power interrupt circuit 252 and an induction power transfer circuit 256. In one aspect, the induction power transfer circuit 265 receives a power transfer from a corresponding circuit of the handle assembly 220 and changes the modular attachment power source 254. The induction power transfer circuit 256 prevents the modular attachment from depleting the power source 254 during periods of activity such as surgical operations. Additionally, the main MCU 232 is configured to communicate with the power control circuit 250 to cut-off or reduce power during periods of inactivity.

FIGS. 11 and 12 illustrate a power interrupt circuit 252 comprising a one-time pull tab 248 and a resettable pull tab 258. The one-time pull tab 248 is configured to act as a barrier between the power source 254 and a circuit contact lead 262 (shown in FIG. 11 ), and prevents the circuit from being completed. The one-time pull tab 248 is made out of an insulating material such as a polymer or paper. The one-time pull tab 248 prevents accidental device operation during the initial shipment and transit of the modular attachment. Once the modular attachment is received by an end user, they may remove and discard the one-time pull tab 248.

In contrast, the resettable pull tab 258 is configured as a reusable barrier between the power source 254 and the circuit contact lead 262. The resettable pull tab 258 prevents the modular attachment 210 from being activated during periods when it is disconnected from the handle assembly 220. When the modular attachment is coupled with the handle assembly, the resettable pull tab 258 is reset and the power control circuit 250 is completed with the power source 254.

FIG. 13 illustrates another aspect of a modular attachment 210 comprising a power control circuit 250 with a one-time pull tab 248 that is part of the original packaging of the modular attachment 210. The one-time pull tab 248 is removed when the modular attachment 210 is removed from the original packaging.

FIG. 14 illustrates a flow diagram 600 for enabling and disabling a sleep mode setting for a modular attachment of a surgical instrument. During periods of inactivity, the safety MCU 238 communicates with the power control circuit to place the modular attachment in a sleep mode and operate at the first, lower voltage. The safety MCU monitors input signals from the sensor array 216 and the incoming operation instructions from the handle assembly control circuit 240. The safety MCU determines 602 that the handle assembly and the modular attachment have made and initial connection or the control circuit 230 has received a new input signal. Based on the type of input, the safety MCU may set different time lengths for a timeout period. The safety MCU 238 initiates 604 the counter. In various aspects, the counter may incrementally increase until it reaches the timeout period or may incrementally decrease until the counter value reaches 0. The safety MCU 238 determines if the counter value had reached the time period (e.g. predetermined value or 0). If the counter has not reached the timeout period, the safety MCU 238 continues to monitor the counter value and input communications. If the counter has reached the timeout period, the safety MCU 238 initiates 610 a sleep mode. Once the modular attachment enters sleep mode, the end effector operations are inoperable at the lower voltage setting. While in sleep mode, the safety MCU 238 continues monitor input communications to the control circuit 230 and determines 612 if the control circuit has received new inputs. If the control circuit 230 has received new inputs, the safety MCU 238 resumes active mode and resets the counter value (e.g. 0 or predetermined value). Active mode increases the voltage to the second larger voltages and the end effector regains full functionality. If the control circuit 230 has not received new inputs, the safety MCU 238 continues to monitor input communications to the control circuit 230.

Various aspects of the systems, devices, and methods for identifying a staple cartridge installed in a surgical instrument described herein are set out in the following examples.

Example 1—A modular surgical instrument, comprising a handle assembly comprising a handle assembly control circuit and a modular attachment. The modular attachment comprises a nozzle, and a shaft extending distally from the nozzle, the shaft defining a central longitudinal axis. The modular attachment further comprises an end effector distal to the shaft, the end effector comprising a sensor array. The modular attachment further comprises a modular attachment control circuit communicably coupled to the sensor array, and physically coupled to the shaft. The modular attachment control circuit is configured to rotate with the shaft relative to the handle assembly about the central longitudinal axis. The modular attachment control circuit is configured for wireless communication with the handle assembly control circuit.

Example 2—The modular surgical instrument of Example 1, wherein the modular attachment control circuit comprises a first wireless transceiver, wherein the handle assembly control circuit comprises a second wireless transceiver, and wherein the modular attachment control circuit is configured to establish a short range wireless connection between the first wireless transceiver and the second wireless transceiver over a short range wireless communication protocol.

Example 3—The modular surgical instrument of Examples 1 or 2, wherein the modular attachment control circuit is configured to receive an indication of a first voltage powering the modular attachment, wherein the first voltage is sufficient to enable a short range wireless broadcast, but insufficient to enable a full operation of the end effector. The modular attachment control circuit is further configured to determine that the first voltage matches a predetermined voltage requirement and broadcast the short range wireless connection to the handle assembly control circuit.

Example 4—The modular surgical instrument of Example 3, wherein the first voltage is provided to the modular attachment from a connection with an external power station, and wherein the connection with the external power station is temporary until a unique passcode is validated.

Example 5—The modular surgical instrument of Examples 1, 2, 3, or 4, wherein a unique passcode is assigned to the modular attachment during the manufacturing process of the modular attachment.

Example 6—The modular surgical instrument of Example 5, further comprising a safety microcontroller unit (MCU) and a main MCU. The safety MCU is configured to receive a user input from the user input interface, wherein the user input is representative of an input passcode. The safety MCU is further configured to validate that the input passcode matches the unique passcode, and enable universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) serial encoding by the main MCU. The main MCU encodes at least one of input parameters received by the sensor array and operational instructions received over a short range wireless communication protocol.

Example 7—The modular surgical instrument of Example 6, wherein the short range wireless communication protocol comprises Bluetooth.

Example 8—The modular surgical instrument of Examples 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7, wherein the handle assembly further comprises a power circuit comprising a power source.

Example 9—The modular surgical instrument of Examples 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8, wherein the handle assembly further comprises an inductive power transfer coil.

Example 10—The modular surgical instrument of Example 9, wherein the modular attachment comprises an inductive power source that receives an inductive power transfer from the inductive power transfer coil of the handle assembly; and wherein the first voltage is wirelessly transferred to the modular attachment from the inductive power transfer coil of the handle assembly.

Example 11—The modular surgical instrument of Examples 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, or 10, wherein the modular attachment comprises a power interrupt circuit configured to disconnect power to the modular attachment based on a disconnection of the nozzle from the handle assembly.

Example 12—A method for wireless communication within a surgical instrument including a modular attachment and a handle assembly. The method comprises storing, by a control circuit of the modular attachment, a unique handshake passcode for establishing a secure wireless connection over a short range wireless communication protocol, receiving, by a control circuit of the handle assembly, the unique handshake passcode, and authenticating, by the control circuit of the handle assembly, the unique handshake passcode. The method further comprises establishing, by the control circuit of the handle assembly, a secure wireless connection over the short range wireless communication protocol with the modular attachment, receiving, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, operational instructions over the secure wireless connection, and determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, a duration since a last received operational instructions.

Example 13—The method of Example 12, further comprising receiving, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, an indication of a first voltage powering the modular attachment, wherein the first voltage is sufficient to enable a short range wireless broadcast over the secure wireless connection, but insufficient for a full operation of the modular attachment. The method further comprises determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the first voltage matches a predetermined voltage requirement, and broadcasting, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, the short range wireless connection to the handle assembly control circuit.

Example 14—The method of Example 13, wherein the first voltage is provided to the modular attachment from a connection with an external power station, and wherein the connection with the external power station is temporary until a unique passcode is validated.

Example 15—The method of Examples 12, 13, or 14, wherein the short range wireless communication protocol comprises Bluetooth.

Example 16—The method of Examples 12, 13, 14, or 15, wherein a unique passcode is assigned to the modular attachment during the manufacturing process of the modular attachment.

Example 17—The method of Example 16, further comprising receiving, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, a user input from the control circuit of the handle assembly, wherein the user input is representative of an input passcode, validating, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the input passcode matches the unique passcode, and encoding, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, wireless communications sent to the control circuit of the handle assembly with a universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) serial encoding.

Example 18—The method of Examples 12, 13, 14, 15,16, or 17, further comprising determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, a duration since a last received operational instructions, and comparing, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the duration since the last received operational instructions exceeds a predetermined timeout interval.

Example 19—The method of Example 18, further comprising determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the duration since the last received operational instructions was received meets a criteria for the predetermined timeout interval, and placing, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, the modular attachment in a sleep mode.

Example 20—The method of Examples 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, or 19, further comprising determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the modular attachment is in sleep mode, receiving, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, operational instructions from the control circuit of the handle assembly, and placing, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, the modular attachment in an active mode, wherein the active mode runs at a higher voltage than sleep mode.

While several forms have been illustrated and described, it is not the intention of Applicant to restrict or limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. Numerous modifications, variations, changes, substitutions, combinations, and equivalents to those forms may be implemented and will occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Moreover, the structure of each element associated with the described forms can be alternatively described as a means for providing the function performed by the element. Also, where materials are disclosed for certain components, other materials may be used. It is therefore to be understood that the foregoing description and the appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications, combinations, and variations as falling within the scope of the disclosed forms. The appended claims are intended to cover all such modifications, variations, changes, substitutions, modifications, and equivalents.

The foregoing detailed description has set forth various forms of the devices and/or processes via the use of block diagrams, flowcharts, and/or examples. Insofar as such block diagrams, flowcharts, and/or examples contain one or more functions and/or operations, it will be understood by those within the art that each function and/or operation within such block diagrams, flowcharts, and/or examples can be implemented, individually and/or collectively, by a wide range of hardware, software, firmware, or virtually any combination thereof. Those skilled in the art will recognize that some aspects of the forms disclosed herein, in whole or in part, can be equivalently implemented in integrated circuits, as one or more computer programs running on one or more computers (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more computer systems), as one or more programs running on one or more processors (e.g., as one or more programs running on one or more microprocessors), as firmware, or as virtually any combination thereof, and that designing the circuitry and/or writing the code for the software and or firmware would be well within the skill of one of skill in the art in light of this disclosure. In addition, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the mechanisms of the subject matter described herein are capable of being distributed as one or more program products in a variety of forms, and that an illustrative form of the subject matter described herein applies regardless of the particular type of signal bearing medium used to actually carry out the distribution.

Instructions used to program logic to perform various disclosed aspects can be stored within a memory in the system, such as dynamic random access memory (DRAM), cache, flash memory, or other storage. Furthermore, the instructions can be distributed via a network or by way of other computer readable media. Thus a machine-readable medium may include any mechanism for storing or transmitting information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer), but is not limited to, floppy diskettes, optical disks, compact disc, read-only memory (CD-ROMs), and magneto-optical disks, read-only memory (ROMs), random access memory (RAM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), magnetic or optical cards, flash memory, or a tangible, machine-readable storage used in the transmission of information over the Internet via electrical, optical, acoustical or other forms of propagated signals (e.g., carrier waves, infrared signals, digital signals, etc.). Accordingly, the non-transitory computer-readable medium includes any type of tangible machine-readable medium suitable for storing or transmitting electronic instructions or information in a form readable by a machine (e.g., a computer).

As used in any aspect herein, the term “control circuit” may refer to, for example, hardwired circuitry, programmable circuitry (e.g., a computer processor including one or more individual instruction processing cores, processing unit, processor, microcontroller, microcontroller unit, controller, digital signal processor (DSP), programmable logic device (PLD), programmable logic array (PLA), or field programmable gate array (FPGA)), state machine circuitry, firmware that stores instructions executed by programmable circuitry, and any combination thereof. The control circuit may, collectively or individually, be embodied as circuitry that forms part of a larger system, for example, an integrated circuit (IC), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a system on-chip (SoC), desktop computers, laptop computers, tablet computers, servers, smart phones, etc. Accordingly, as used herein “control circuit” includes, but is not limited to, electrical circuitry having at least one discrete electrical circuit, electrical circuitry having at least one integrated circuit, electrical circuitry having at least one application specific integrated circuit, electrical circuitry forming a general purpose computing device configured by a computer program (e.g., a general purpose computer configured by a computer program which at least partially carries out processes and/or devices described herein, or a microprocessor configured by a computer program which at least partially carries out processes and/or devices described herein), electrical circuitry forming a memory device (e.g., forms of random access memory), and/or electrical circuitry forming a communications device (e.g., a modem, communications switch, or optical-electrical equipment). Those having skill in the art will recognize that the subject matter described herein may be implemented in an analog or digital fashion or some combination thereof.

As used in one or more aspects of the present disclosure, a microcontroller may generally comprise a memory and a microprocessor (“processor”) operationally coupled to the memory. The processor may control a motor driver circuit generally utilized to control the position and velocity of a motor, for example. In certain instances, the processor can signal the motor driver to stop and/or disable the motor, for example. In certain instances, the microcontroller may be an LM 4F230H5QR, available from Texas Instruments, for example. In at least one example, the Texas Instruments LM4F230H5QR is an ARM Cortex-M4F Processor Core comprising on-chip memory of 256 KB single-cycle flash memory, or other non-volatile memory, up to 40 MHz, a prefetch buffer to improve performance above 40 MHz, a 32 KB single-cycle serial random access memory (SRAM), internal read-only memory (ROM) loaded with StellarisWare® software, 2 KB electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), one or more pulse width modulation (PWM) modules, one or more quadrature encoder inputs (QEI) analog, one or more 12-bit Analog-to-Digital Converters (ADC) with 12 analog input channels, among other features that are readily available for the product datasheet.

It should be understood that the term processor as used herein includes any suitable microprocessor, or other basic computing device that incorporates the functions of a computer's central processing unit (CPU) on an integrated circuit or at most a few integrated circuits. The processor is a multipurpose, programmable device that accepts digital data as input, processes it according to instructions stored in its memory, and provides results as output. It is an example of sequential digital logic, as it has internal memory. Processors operate on numbers and symbols represented in the binary numeral system.

In at least one instance, the processor may be any single core or multicore processor such as those known under the trade name ARM Cortex by Texas Instruments. Nevertheless, other suitable substitutes for microcontrollers and safety processor may be employed, without limitation.

As used in any aspect herein, the term “logic” may refer to an app, software, firmware and/or circuitry configured to perform any of the aforementioned operations. Software may be embodied as a software package, code, instructions, instruction sets and/or data recorded on non-transitory computer readable storage medium. Firmware may be embodied as code, instructions or instruction sets and/or data that are hard-coded (e.g., nonvolatile) in memory devices.

As used in any aspect herein, the terms “component,” “system,” “module” and the like can refer to a computer-related entity, either hardware, a combination of hardware and software, software, or software in execution.

As used in any aspect herein, an “algorithm” refers to a self-consistent sequence for manipulation of physical quantities and/or logic states which may, though need not necessarily, take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated. It is common usage to refer to these signals as bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, terms, numbers, or the like. These and similar terms may be associated with the appropriate physical quantities and are merely convenient labels applied to these quantities and/or states.

A network may include a packet switched network. The communication devices may be capable of communicating with each other using a selected packet switched network communications protocol. One example communications protocol may include an Ethernet communications protocol which may be capable permitting communication using a Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). The Ethernet protocol may comply or be compatible with the Ethernet standard published by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) titled “IEEE 802.3 Standard”, published in December, 2008 and/or later versions of this standard. Alternatively or additionally, the communication devices may be capable of communicating with each other using an X.25 communications protocol. The X.25 communications protocol may comply or be compatible with a standard promulgated by the International Telecommunication Union-Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T). Alternatively or additionally, the communication devices may be capable of communicating with each other using a frame relay communications protocol. The frame relay communications protocol may comply or be compatible with a standard promulgated by Consultative Committee for International Telegraph and Telephone (CCITT) and/or the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). Alternatively or additionally, the transceivers may be capable of communicating with each other using an Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) communications protocol. The ATM communications protocol may comply or be compatible with an ATM standard published by the ATM Forum titled “ATM-MPLS Network Interworking 2.0” published August 2001, and/or later versions of this standard. Of course, different and/or after-developed connection-oriented network communication protocols are equally contemplated herein.

One or more drive systems or drive assemblies, as described herein, employ one or more electric motors. In various forms, the electric motors may be a DC brushed driving motor, for example. In other arrangements, the motor may include a brushless motor, a cordless motor, a synchronous motor, a stepper motor, or any other suitable electric motor. The electric motors may be powered by a power source that in one form may comprise a removable power pack. Batteries may each comprise, for example, a Lithium Ion (“LI”) or other suitable battery. The electric motors can include rotatable shafts that operably interface with gear reducer assemblies, for example. In certain instances, a voltage polarity provided by the power source can operate an electric motor in a clockwise direction wherein the voltage polarity applied to the electric motor by the battery can be reversed in order to operate the electric motor in a counter-clockwise direction. In various aspects, a microcontroller controls the electric motor through a motor driver via a pulse width modulated control signal. The motor driver can be configured to adjust the speed of the electric motor either in clockwise or counter-clockwise direction. The motor driver is also configured to switch between a plurality of operational modes which include an electronic motor braking mode, a constant speed mode, an electronic clutching mode, and a controlled current activation mode. In electronic braking mode, two terminal of the drive motor 200 are shorted and the generated back EMF counteracts the rotation of the electric motor allowing for faster stopping and greater positional precision.

Unless specifically stated otherwise as apparent from the foregoing disclosure, it is appreciated that, throughout the foregoing disclosure, discussions using terms such as “processing,” “computing,” “calculating,” “determining,” “displaying,” or the like, refer to the action and processes of a computer system, or similar electronic computing device, that manipulates and transforms data represented as physical (electronic) quantities within the computer system's registers and memories into other data similarly represented as physical quantities within the computer system memories or registers or other such information storage, transmission or display devices.

One or more components may be referred to herein as “configured to,” “configurable to,” “operable/operative to,” “adapted/adaptable,” “able to,” “conformable/conformed to,” etc. Those skilled in the art will recognize that “configured to” can generally encompass active-state components and/or inactive-state components and/or standby-state components, unless context requires otherwise.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that, in general, terms used herein, and especially in the appended claims (e.g., bodies of the appended claims) are generally intended as “open” terms (e.g., the term “including” should be interpreted as “including but not limited to,” the term “having” should be interpreted as “having at least,” the term “includes” should be interpreted as “includes but is not limited to,” etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is intended, such an intent will be explicitly recited in the claim, and in the absence of such recitation no such intent is present. For example, as an aid to understanding, the following appended claims may contain usage of the introductory phrases “at least one” and “one or more” to introduce claim recitations. However, the use of such phrases should not be construed to imply that the introduction of a claim recitation by the indefinite articles “a” or “an” limits any particular claim containing such introduced claim recitation to claims containing only one such recitation, even when the same claim includes the introductory phrases “one or more” or “at least one” and indefinite articles such as “a” or “an” (e.g., “a” and/or “an” should typically be interpreted to mean “at least one” or “one or more”); the same holds true for the use of definite articles used to introduce claim recitations.

In addition, even if a specific number of an introduced claim recitation is explicitly recited, those skilled in the art will recognize that such recitation should typically be interpreted to mean at least the recited number (e.g., the bare recitation of “two recitations,” without other modifiers, typically means at least two recitations, or two or more recitations). Furthermore, in those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, and C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, and C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). In those instances where a convention analogous to “at least one of A, B, or C, etc.” is used, in general such a construction is intended in the sense one having skill in the art would understand the convention (e.g., “a system having at least one of A, B, or C” would include but not be limited to systems that have A alone, B alone, C alone, A and B together, A and C together, B and C together, and/or A, B, and C together, etc.). It will be further understood by those within the art that typically a disjunctive word and/or phrase presenting two or more alternative terms, whether in the description, claims, or drawings, should be understood to contemplate the possibilities of including one of the terms, either of the terms, or both terms unless context dictates otherwise. For example, the phrase “A or B” will be typically understood to include the possibilities of “A” or “B” or “A and B.”

With respect to the appended claims, those skilled in the art will appreciate that recited operations therein may generally be performed in any order. Also, although various operational flow diagrams are presented in a sequence(s), it should be understood that the various operations may be performed in other orders than those which are illustrated, or may be performed concurrently. Examples of such alternate orderings may include overlapping, interleaved, interrupted, reordered, incremental, preparatory, supplemental, simultaneous, reverse, or other variant orderings, unless context dictates otherwise. Furthermore, terms like “responsive to,” “related to,” or other past-tense adjectives are generally not intended to exclude such variants, unless context dictates otherwise.

It is worthy to note that any reference to “one aspect,” “an aspect,” “an exemplification,” “one exemplification,” and the like means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the aspect is included in at least one aspect. Thus, appearances of the phrases “in one aspect,” “in an aspect,” “in an exemplification,” and “in one exemplification” in various places throughout the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same aspect. Furthermore, the particular features, structures or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more aspects.

In this specification, unless otherwise indicated, terms “about” or “approximately” as used in the present disclosure, unless otherwise specified, means an acceptable error for a particular value as determined by one of ordinary skill in the art, which depends in part on how the value is measured or determined. In certain embodiments, the term “about” or “approximately” means within 1, 2, 3, or 4 standard deviations. In certain embodiments, the term “about” or “approximately” means within 50%, 20%, 15%, 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%, or 0.05% of a given value or range.

In this specification, unless otherwise indicated, all numerical parameters are to be understood as being prefaced and modified in all instances by the term “about,” in which the numerical parameters possess the inherent variability characteristic of the underlying measurement techniques used to determine the numerical value of the parameter. At the very least, and not as an attempt to limit the application of the doctrine of equivalents to the scope of the claims, each numerical parameter described herein should at least be construed in light of the number of reported significant digits and by applying ordinary rounding techniques.

Any numerical range recited herein includes all sub-ranges subsumed within the recited range. For example, a range of “1 to 10” includes all sub-ranges between (and including) the recited minimum value of 1 and the recited maximum value of 10, that is, having a minimum value equal to or greater than 1 and a maximum value equal to or less than 10. Also, all ranges recited herein are inclusive of the end points of the recited ranges. For example, a range of “1 to 10” includes the end points 1 and 10. Any maximum numerical limitation recited in this specification is intended to include all lower numerical limitations subsumed therein, and any minimum numerical limitation recited in this specification is intended to include all higher numerical limitations subsumed therein. Accordingly, Applicant reserves the right to amend this specification, including the claims, to expressly recite any sub-range subsumed within the ranges expressly recited. All such ranges are inherently described in this specification.

Any patent application, patent, non-patent publication, or other disclosure material referred to in this specification and/or listed in any Application Data Sheet is incorporated by reference herein, to the extent that the incorporated materials is not inconsistent herewith. As such, and to the extent necessary, the disclosure as explicitly set forth herein supersedes any conflicting material incorporated herein by reference. Any material, or portion thereof, that is said to be incorporated by reference herein, but which conflicts with existing definitions, statements, or other disclosure material set forth herein will only be incorporated to the extent that no conflict arises between that incorporated material and the existing disclosure material.

In summary, numerous benefits have been described which result from employing the concepts described herein. The foregoing description of the one or more forms has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or limiting to the precise form disclosed. Modifications or variations are possible in light of the above teachings. The one or more forms were chosen and described in order to illustrate principles and practical application to thereby enable one of ordinary skill in the art to utilize the various forms and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the claims submitted herewith define the overall scope. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A modular surgical instrument, comprising: a handle assembly comprising a handle assembly control circuit; and a modular attachment, comprising: a nozzle; a shaft extending distally from the nozzle, the shaft defining a central longitudinal axis; an end effector distal to the shaft, the end effector comprising a sensor array; and a modular attachment control circuit communicably coupled to the sensor array, and physically coupled to the shaft, wherein the modular attachment control circuit is configured to rotate with the shaft relative to the handle assembly about the central longitudinal axis, and wherein the modular attachment control circuit is configured for wireless communication with the handle assembly control circuit.
 2. The modular surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the modular attachment control circuit comprises a first wireless transceiver, wherein the handle assembly control circuit comprises a second wireless transceiver, and wherein the modular attachment control circuit is configured to establish a short range wireless connection between the first wireless transceiver and the second wireless transceiver over a short range wireless communication protocol.
 3. The modular surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the modular attachment control circuit is configured to: receive an indication of a first voltage powering the modular attachment, wherein the first voltage is sufficient to enable a short range wireless broadcast, but insufficient to enable a full operation of the end effector; determine that the first voltage matches a predetermined voltage requirement; and broadcast the short range wireless connection to the handle assembly control circuit.
 4. The modular surgical instrument of claim 3, wherein the first voltage is provided to the modular attachment from a connection with an external power station, and wherein the connection with the external power station is temporary until a unique passcode is validated.
 5. The modular surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein a unique passcode is assigned to the modular attachment during the manufacturing process of the modular attachment.
 6. The modular surgical instrument of claim 5, further comprising a safety microcontroller unit (MCU) and a main MCU, wherein the safety MCU is configured to: receive a user input from the user input interface, wherein the user input is representative of an input passcode; validate that the input passcode matches the unique passcode; and enable universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) serial encoding by the main MCU, wherein the main MCU encodes at least one of input parameters received by the sensor array and operational instructions received over a short range wireless communication protocol.
 7. The modular surgical instrument of claim 6, wherein the short range wireless communication protocol comprises Bluetooth.
 8. The modular surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the handle assembly further comprises a power circuit comprising a power source.
 9. The modular surgical instrument of claim 8, wherein the handle assembly further comprises an inductive power transfer coil.
 10. The modular surgical instrument of claim 9, wherein the modular attachment comprises an inductive power source that receives an inductive power transfer from the inductive power transfer coil of the handle assembly; and wherein the first voltage is wirelessly transferred to the modular attachment from the inductive power transfer coil of the handle assembly.
 11. The modular surgical instrument of claim 1, wherein the modular attachment comprises a power interrupt circuit configured to disconnect power to the modular attachment based on a disconnection of the nozzle from the handle assembly.
 12. A method for wireless communication within a surgical instrument including a modular attachment and a handle assembly, the method comprising: storing, by a control circuit of the modular attachment, a unique handshake passcode for establishing a secure wireless connection over a short range wireless communication protocol; receiving, by a control circuit of the handle assembly, the unique handshake passcode; authenticating, by the control circuit of the handle assembly, the unique handshake passcode; establishing, by the control circuit of the handle assembly, a secure wireless connection over the short range wireless communication protocol with the modular attachment; receiving, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, operational instructions over the secure wireless connection; and determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, a duration since a last received operational instructions.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprising: receiving, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, an indication of a first voltage powering the modular attachment, wherein the first voltage is sufficient to enable a short range wireless broadcast over the secure wireless connection, but insufficient for a full operation of the modular attachment; determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the first voltage matches a predetermined voltage requirement; and broadcasting, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, the short range wireless connection to the handle assembly control circuit.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein the first voltage is provided to the modular attachment from a connection with an external power station, and wherein the connection with the external power station is temporary until a unique passcode is validated.
 15. The method of claim 12, wherein the short range wireless communication protocol comprises Bluetooth.
 16. The method of claim 12, wherein a unique passcode is assigned to the modular attachment during the manufacturing process of the modular attachment.
 17. The method of claim 16, further comprising: receiving, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, a user input from the control circuit of the handle assembly, wherein the user input is representative of an input passcode; validating, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the input passcode matches the unique passcode; and encoding, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, wireless communications sent to the control circuit of the handle assembly with a universal asynchronous receiver transmitter (UART) serial encoding.
 18. The method of claim 12, further comprising: determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, a duration since a last received operational instructions; and comparing, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the duration since the last received operational instructions exceeds a predetermined timeout interval.
 19. The method of claim 18, further comprising: determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the duration since the last received operational instructions was received meets a criteria for the predetermined timeout interval; and placing, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, the modular attachment in a sleep mode.
 20. The method of claim 18, further comprising: determining, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, that the modular attachment is in sleep mode; receiving, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, operational instructions from the control circuit of the handle assembly; and placing, by the control circuit of the modular attachment, the modular attachment in an active mode, wherein the active mode runs at a higher voltage than sleep mode. 